Joakim Noah
Joakim Simon Noah ( ''JOH-ə-kim''born February 25, 1985) is a professional basketball player who currently plays for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Born in New York City to a Swedish mother and a French father of Cameroonian descent, he holds American, Swedish and French citizenship. He played college basketball for the University of Florida, and was a key member of the Florida Gators' starting five that won two consecutive NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournaments in 2006 and 2007. In 2007, the Chicago Bulls selected Noah in the first round (ninth pick overall) in the 2007 NBA Draft. Early life Noah was born in New York City, New York to French singer and former professional tennis player Yannick Noah, and Cécilia Rodhe, Miss Sweden 1978. His paternal grandfather Zacharie Noah was a Cameroonian professional soccer player, winner of the Coupe de France in 1961. Noah lived in Paris, France from 1988 to 1998 and returned to New York City at age 13. He played high school basketball for the United Nations International School, Poly Prep Country Day School and Lawrenceville School. College career During his freshman year at the University of Florida (2004–2005), he played sparingly, clocking in just 10.3 minutes per game, and averaged only 3.9 points and 2.7 rebounds per contest. Noah made significant improvements during his sophomore year (2005–2006), leading his team in points (14.2 ppg) and blocks (2.4 bpg), while ranking second in rebounds (7.1 rpg) behind teammate Al Horford (7.6 rpg). Almost unknown at the beginning of the season, Noah's draft stock improved continually. By the end of the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship he was considered by many to be the top college prospect in the country, and had he declared for the 2006 NBA Draft he very likely would have been taken first or second. However, Noah, along with teammates Al Horford and Corey Brewer announced at their national championship celebration that they would return for their junior seasons. Noah and the Florida Gators would go on to repeat as champions. 2006 NCAA Tournament Noah was named the Most Outstanding Player (MOP) of the NCAA Tournament's Minneapolis Regional after leading the Gators over top-seeded Villanova in the final game with 26 points, 15 rebounds, and 5 blocks. On April 3, 2006, Noah led the Gators to a 73–57 win over UCLA for the school's first NCAA Basketball Championship, and was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four. In the finale, he posted 16 points, 9 rebounds, and a championship game record 6 blocks. 2007 NCAA Tournament The next year after the Gators won the 2006 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, they were at it again with five returning starters. Noah started off the tournament with 17 points and 12 rebounds in 24 minutes of play in a win vs. the Jackson State Tigers. In the second round, Noah scored nine points and had nine rebounds in a win vs. the Purdue Boilermakers. The Purdue game, Butler Bulldogs game, and Ohio State championship game were the only three games he did not have double digit rebounds in the tournament; although he had nine rebounds in two of those games. He had a tournament high, 14 points and 14 rebounds in the Elite Eight in a win vs. the Oregon Ducks. In the championship game vs. the Ohio State Buckeyes, he was faced with a tough match-up against the future 2007 NBA Draft number one pick, Greg Oden. Regardless he was still able to score eight points and grab three rebounds although getting into foul trouble. He also was perfect from the free throw line making six shots on six attempts. With the help of Joakim Noah on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball, the Florida Gators were able to win their second NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship in two years. Professional career Early career The Chicago Bulls selected Noah as the ninth overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft. Noah and his teammates at Florida, Corey Brewer and Al Horford, became the highest picked trio from the same college in the history of the NBA. Horford was chosen third overall by the Atlanta Hawks, and Brewer was chosen seventh overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves. On November 6, 2007, Noah made his regular season debut off the bench after missing the first three games with a sprained ankle. He posted 2 points and 4 rebounds. Noah averaged 6.7 points and 7.6 rebounds per game during the 2008–09 regular season. Noah played a key role in game 6 of the 2009 Eastern Conference first round playoff series between the Bulls and the Boston Celtics. In the final minute of the game's third overtime period, with the score tied at 123–123, he stole the ball from Paul Pierce and dribbled down the court (unusual for a center) for a dunk, drawing Pierce's sixth foul in the process. The Bulls went on to win the game 128–127,[10] though they would lose the series in Game 7. 2009–10 season During the 2009–10 season, Noah averaged 10.7 points and 11.0 rebounds per game. He only played 64 games due to injury, though. The Bulls once again made the playoffs securing the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference. In the playoffs, Noah averaged 14.8 points per game and 13.0 rebounds, but the Bulls lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round in five games. 2010–11 season On October 4, 2010, Noah signed a five-year, $60 million contract extension with the Bulls. On December 15, 2010, the Bulls announced that due to ligament damage in Noah's hand, he would have surgery and miss 8 to 10 weeks. Noah was averaging 14 points and 11.7 rebounds in the 24 games prior to his injury. He returned to action in the 55th game of the season on February 23 after recuperating from right thumb surgery. He scored 7 points and had 16 rebounds in just over 24 minutes. He returned to the inactive list for games 74, 75 and 76. 2011–12 season On February 22, 2012, Noah recorded his first career triple-double with 13 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists in a game against the Milwaukee Bucks. It was the first triple-double by a Bulls center since Artis Gilmore recorded one in 1977. 2012–13 season On December 7, 2012, Noah recorded his career highs of 30 points and 23 rebounds in a win against the Detroit Pistons. On December 18, 2012, he recorded his second ever triple-double, scoring 11 points, grabbing 13 rebounds and providing a career high-tying 10 assists, in a 100-89 victory over the Boston Celtics. On January 24, 2013 Noah was named as a reserve in the 2013 NBA All-Star Game, representing the Chicago Bulls alongside teammate Luol Deng. He became the Bulls' first All-Star center since Artis Gilmore in 1982. He played 16 minutes in the game, scoring 8 points and collecting 10 rebounds in the East's loss. On February 28, 2013, Noah recorded his third career triple-double, scoring 23 points, collecting 21 rebounds and making a career high 11 blocks in Chicago's 93-82 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. In doing so, Noah both tied a franchise record for blocks in a regular season game set by Artis Gilmore on December 20, 1977, and joined Hakeem Olajuwon, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shawn Bradley, Shaquille O'Neal, and Elvin Hayes as the only players to record a triple-double of 20-20-10 in points, rebounds, and blocks since blocks began being recorded, and the only player among them to do so while shooting 65 percent from the field. Awards NCAA *2006 Associated Press (AP) All-SEC First Team *Named an Honorable Mention All-American by AP. *Most Outstanding Player in the 2006 Final Four *NCAA Men's Division I basketball champion – 2006, 2007 NBA *2013 NBA All-Defensive First Team *2011 NBA All-Defensive Second Team *2013 NBA All-Star Sponsorship Joakim Noah is sponsored by Le Coq Sportif and currently wears their basketball shoes. Noah is also sponsored by the BSN supplement brand. NBA career statistics Regular season Playoffs Category:Roster